M.A.S.K. DC Comics Vol 1 Issue 4

Our quest to review the 4-issue set of M.A.S.K. comic books is coming to a conclusion! Issue #4 was published March 1986 and was titled "The Family Jewels." We invite you to dust off your copies or visit the comics section at Boulder-Hill.Net to read and comment with our upcoming podcast review.

You can participate by voting for your favorite issue(s) in the right hand column of this blog and also by leaving comments on the blog or poll. Here's a quick review of issue #4...

Vol 1 Issue 4

'The Ray of Doom'

The creative team on the fourth and final issue in the series was nearly identical to the DC crew for issues #3. They include inker Joe Delbeato and penciler Mike Chen with colors by Shelley Eiber and letters by John Costanza, who took over for D.C. Weiss. The script was written by Michael Fleisher and the editor was Andrew Helfer. It was released in March 1986 for the cover price of US 75 cents. The story itself was 22 pages.

The cover to the final issue gives us a 7-agent montage against an explosive background with the emphatic word "Endgame!" underneath. The climax begins with Nash Gorey forcing Alex Sector and Buddy Hawkes to load the secret P.N.A. satellite into Outlaw and then locking them up in the Boulder Hill jail.

We are then taken to the Louvre museum in Paris where a robbery has taken place...

On their way back to the USA, Matt Trakker receives a direct order from Duane Kennedy at P.N.A. to assist the situation. Matt feels something is not quite right with Duane's tone and uncovers a clue. We cut then to the Kennedy Space Center where V.E.N.O.M. agents use their masks to subdue three NASA astronauts preparing for launch. Back at Boulder Hill, Buddy devises a plan to escape the Boulder Hill jail. Then back at the Louvre with M.A.S.K. on scene, Matt reveals that the paintings weren't actually missing at all with the help of Spectrum and Dusty's Backlash mask. Buddy's plan to escape the jail cell works and radios Matt about Nash Gorey...

Sly Rax, Vanessa Warfield, and Floyd Malloy are revealed as the astronauts inside the space shuttle. After rigging the satellite, the shuttle lands in the desert for a demonstration to show the US President. When he initiates the satellite's weapon, it destroys the space shuttle and causes a panic amongst the people. Mayhem explains to his crew that the "death ray" will make its way across America to destroy all weapon stockpiles in order for V.E.N.O.M. and Contraworld to unleash an attack on the world. But his first priority is a little funding trip to Las Vegas...

Matt finally understands that these international missions were nothing but a distraction from the real plan. Alex and Bruce work on pinpointing the location of the satellite aboard Rhino as Hondo heads evacuating the cities in the death ray's path. V.E.N.O.M. continues to pilfer banks and casinos in Las Vegas as M.A.S.K. arrives on scene...

A battle ensues between M.A.S.K. and V.E.N.O.M. as Duane Kennedy looks on. Authorities bust in his office and unmask the impostor while demanding the location of the real Duane Kennedy. M.A.S.K. wins the battle, disabling V.E.N.O.M. and finally, the death ray with a Rhino missile. With the conflict resolved, Matt reflects on the situation a few days later...

Hope you enjoyed the reviews of the first series of M.A.S.K. comic books. Don't forget to vote for your favorite issue in the series in the sidebar poll. Be looking for a new episode of the MASKast podcast in the near future where we will reveal the results, read your comments, and discuss our favorite issues, illustrations, and story points of the series.

About Jason GrossJason Gross is an '80s kid trapped in a 40-year old body and has loved M.A.S.K. from the very beginning. He also contributes his retro pop culture knowledge to the Rediscoverthe80s.com website.

Wyatt Bloom is a lifelong M.A.S.K. fan as well as several other '80s properties including Knight Rider, Dukes of Hazzard, Airwolf, and Voltron. He also enjoys creating sound systems and the occasional deejay gig.

Besides the AOM website, Jason and Wyatt are lifelong friends who have also collaborated on a M.A.S.K. screenplay and cohost the MASKast podcast. They were also privileged to particpate in a M.A.S.K. 30th Anniversary panel with voice actor Doug Stone at Retro Con in 2015.